The venom is spreading...

Endosulfan is claiming new victims, though a state government survey puts the total number of affected at just a little over 2,000 people in 11 gram panchayats of Kasaragod. Years after the pesticide was banned in Kerala, it is creeping into newer areas – a Down To Earth investigation has tracked down more cases in Muthalamada panchayat in Palakkad district, while reports are coming in of endosulfan-affected people from villages and hamlets located far away from regions where the pesticide was sprayed.

A porous border with Tamil Nadu has encouraged clandestine trade in this deadly poison on one hand, while endosulfan dumped by its manufacturers has seeped into streams and water sources on the other, playing havoc with people’s lives. A CSE exclusive brings together existing knowledge on endosulfan and its chilling truths with new information…